Culture & Public Square

Culture & Public Square helps Christians think biblically about life in society and engage today’s issues with conviction and compassion. Explore articles on current events, ethics, justice, race, technology, public life, and cultural trends—grounded in Scripture and shaped by Christian wisdom. You’ll find guidance for faithful witness, thoughtful dialogue, and making disciples in a complex world, while keeping the gospel at the center. Whether you’re navigating challenging conversations or seeking clarity for ministry and daily life, these resources equip you to live and speak with grace and truth in the public square.

October 18, 2016

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Getting Ready to Vote

By Mark A. Taylor Maybe the best thing we can say about the current U.S. election cycle is it”s almost over. Just three more weeks to go, but as the quality of the rhetoric continues to degenerate, we can fear these may be the most distasteful weeks of all. How is the church reacting? In any election, we”re interested to see or hear how the church is preparing its members to glorify God with their votes. But there”s a harsher light on that question this year for more than one reason. The candidates both have higher negative ratings than any

October 17, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Faith & Virtue

How and WhyÂ America IsÂ Still Searching By Neal Windham I fear that our ability””maybe even our desire””for dialogue is gone. What does this mean for a people whose first and greatest prayer is, “Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”? I live and dwell and have my being in a nation that”s been in search mode for better than 50 years. Long before Google, in the decade of the Kennedys and Vietnam, of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Greenwich Village and Haight-Ashbury, Americans were engulfed in a search for what it means to be a free

October 15, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Fear Not

By Jennifer Johnson I am angry about the state of our union. And I”m not alone. But anger isn”t the core problem. In January, the Esquire/NBC News “American Rage Survey” reported that half of Americans are angrier than they were a year ago. In February, BBC.com reported that 69 percent of Americans are either “very angry” or “somewhat angry” about “the way things are going” in the United States. As I write this, the day after the Orlando nightclub shooting, I”m sure the numbers are even higher. We are angry about climate change, about those who deny climate change exists,

October 14, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

5 Culture Wars Jesus Wouldn”t Fight

By Danielle Hance The Bible says our battle is not against flesh and blood but against the spiritual strongholds of evil (Ephesians 6:12). However, more and more, it seems like Christians are known for their attacks on those who don”t follow a “Christian” lifestyle. As Christians, we should definitely be in the world and not of it, but that does not give us the right to tell anyone what to do, since we are all sinners in need of God”s forgiveness. Considering that God himself, who has every right to judge, did not send Jesus to condemn the world but

October 11, 2016

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Real Patriots

By Mark A. Taylor Why devote so many pages, words, and ink to a question that can be answered with just one word? Can a Christian be a patriot? Yes! With two more words, let us be clear: of course! Readers of articles this month should not see any anti-Americanism here. But these articles offer a plea for us to put our patriotism in perspective: To thank God for America without assuming America is at the center of his will for the world. To ask God to bless America without believing that America”s interests are always God”s purposes. To respect

October 10, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

My Nation Under God

Four problems with nationalism for the Christian By David A. Fiensy I suppose when a small country church invites you to fill their pulpit on a Sunday near the Fourth of July, you should expect some flag-waving. But what I experienced was way over the top, in my opinion. The song leader led us in patriotic songs exclusively. At various times during the service, he seemed to choke up when referring to the American flag. When it came time for the Lord”s Supper, he apologized for “breaking the mood.” After the Communion service, he sang as a solo, “I”m Proud

October 8, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Patriotism, Idolatry, and Evangelism

By Rubel Shelly In my opinion, the United States of America isÂ a wonderful, though imperfect, country. One could even call it exceptional in many ways among all the nations of the world, but I refuse the designation “American exceptionalist.” An American woman can love her country and be deeply patriotic because she appreciates its uniqueness and marvelous history. She might point to such things as its abundant natural resources and favorable climate. More likely, she would talk even more about the freedoms of speech, press, and religion. There is the protection under law its citizens enjoy. She could reference its

October 7, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Culture, Country, & Christ

Books to shed lightÂ on conventional notionsÂ of God and country By Jim Tune “Is the United States an exceptional nation? Of course it is. . . . Though not everyone may like the way the United States has used its exceptional status over the course of the last two centuries, it is hard to deny that it has been . . . extraordinary.” So says John Fea in his foreword to John D. Wilsey”s American Exceptionalism and Civil Religion. Personally, I”m inclined to agree. In my research, the authors of the books I surveyed are, for the most part, in agreement

October 6, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

Can I Be a Christian and a Patriot?

Four biblical principles about our earthly citizenship By Matt Proctor Full confession: I love America. I was born on an overseas U.S. Army base where my father served, and I respect the office of president, sing the national anthem, salute the flag, and own the movie Captain America. But my study of God”s Word has led me to decide how I should view my love of country in terms of my higher calling. Two summers ago, I took my 10- and 12-year-old sons on a weeklong U.S. history tour. We imagined being an immigrant at Ellis Island, marveled at the

October 5, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Reconciliation

Reconciliation

By Jim Tune “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28, English Standard Version). “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18, ESV). ___ A number of widely publicized events have many people concerned about racial tensions in America. Blacks and whites may not agree on underlying causes or potential solutions, but skin color aside, it seems no one is happy about the present state of

September 30, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square

The Gospel of Star Wars

By Joe Boyd Star Wars was everything to me growing up as a child of the 1980s. It was more than just a series of three movies. It was an alternative world that consumed me. I spent hours alone and with friends playing with the action figures””creating new stories to add to the adventure and mythos of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Darth Vader, and Han Solo. I grew up but never outgrew the stories George Lucas created. I was more than excited to see three new “prequel” movies in the early 2000s. While the films fell short of my expectations,

September 20, 2016

Culture & Public Square Politics & Government

How to Protect Your Church”s Tax Exempt Status at Election Time

By Mark A. Taylor Sometimes it”s important to repeat what we think everyone already knows. This week we”re giving space to advice from a Christian lawyer in Maryland to remind us what churches and church spokespersons can and cannot say as our national election approaches. Philip Chong, an attorney with the international law firm Duane Morris LLP, and treasurer and board member at the Baltimore Church of Christ, sent the following advice, which we”re pleased to post here. You may want to share this information with a Christian leader you know. Just because everyone seems to be talking about the

September 9, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square

What”s to Love About ‘Fixer Upper’

By Lauren Hansen If you”re like me, you could watch Chip and Joanna Gaines, stars of HGTV”s home renovation hit Fixer Upper, do just about anything. I”d be entertained watching them watch paint dry. They”re good at their work and enjoy doing it. And, perhaps even more appealing, they honor each other and laugh a lot while working together. They include their kids in projects. They”re champions for their hometown of Waco, Texas. They must”ve boosted business for every carpenter, graphic designer, and antique mall within a 40-mile radius. They”re fun, entertaining, admirable people who seem to have a pretty

September 7, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Reconciliation

Love and Reconciliation

By Jim Tune On Sunday, September 15, 1963, four members of the Ku Klux Klan planted and then detonated at least 15 sticks of dynamite beneath the front steps of an African-American church in Birmingham, Alabama. The firebombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church killed four girls, prompting Martin Luther King Jr. to make one of the most radical statements imaginable: “At times life is hard, as hard as crucible steel. In spite of the darkness of this hour, we must not lose faith in our white brothers.” To insist on faith in the humanity of an enemy and to

August 23, 2016

Culture & Public Square Race

All We Need Is . . . Love?

By Mark A. Taylor Wisconsin state Sen. Lena Taylor offered a thoughtful evaluation of why riots erupted in Milwaukee August 13, after a policeman shot an armed black man running from a traffic stop. There”s much to consider in her perspective, but today I”m posting about a problem even bigger than America”s racial divide. At the end of Taylor”s interview, the host asked her this: “So as a leader in this community, what is your message now to the people living in Milwaukee who are experiencing this unrest, this anger, this expression of frustration that is in many cases taking

August 19, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Race

From Despair to Hope

By Victor Knowles The Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington, D.C., was dedicated in 2011. Visitors pass through the divided granite “Mountain of Despair” on their way to the “Stone of Hope.” An inscription on the “Mountain of Despair” reads, “I was a drum major for justice, peace, and righteousness,” a statement King once suggested for how he would like to be remembered. But today we celebrate a different kind of memorial. It is not carved in granite or set in stone. The memorial consists of two extremely perishable elements: unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine. You

August 14, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Justice

Why Them?

By Jennifer Johnson In her memoir Lit, Mary Karr quotes her father speaking about the well-off: “Born on third base, . . . and they think they hit a home run.” I was born on second base, at least, and when I was a kid the game was black and white. People who don”t have jobs should get them, if you”re a responsible and hard-working person you will be able to afford a place to live, and only those with lesser character would need a hand up or a handout. I never heard things put so starkly by my parents,

August 8, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square

Rushing to Blame

By Joe Boyd Not long ago in Cincinnati, where I live, a very unfortunate accident occurred at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. As you probably remember, a young boy somehow made his way into the gorilla habitat. Ultimately it resulted in the hard decision to kill Harambe, a powerful and beautiful western lowland gorilla, for the sake of the child”s life. Soon after that, the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history happened in Orlando, Florida. A gunman entered a gay nightclub and killed 49 people, injuring 53 others. (And some of the injured are still clinging to life as

August 2, 2016

Culture & Public Square Race

Beyond Fear

By Mark A. Taylor Gene Appel spoke of fear at Eastside Christian Church (Anaheim, California) July 10. This was the first Sunday after two black men, one in Louisiana and another in Minnesota, were shot by white police officers and later in the same week five officers were killed by a black sniper after a peaceful rally in Dallas, Texas. These tragedies were on everyone”s mind that week, along with the continual staccato of news about global terrorism and political upheaval. “When the disciples huddled in secret after Christ”s crucifixion, they were afraid, too,” Appel said. And then he introduced

July 18, 2016

Christian Standard

Culture & Public Square Reconciliation

Living Out the Mystery

By Travis Hurley My story changed when I served as lead minister for a multiethnic congregation in the Washington, D.C., area. Suddenly I was seeing an answer to Jesus” prayer for the visible unity of his people (John 17:20-23) in a way I had never seen before. As I developed deep, rooted relationships across ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic lines, my faith was sharpened, my willingness to love and serve all people was stretched, and a newfound humility and teachability was born within me. The mystery of the gospel””reconciling us to each other as well as to God himself””defies conventional wisdom.